You, Me, Community: Building Bridges Through Visual Storytelling

Step behind the scenes with Tony Flowers as he shares insights into his most recent work, You, Me, Community. His illustrations support and enrich the theme of community with fascinating details, and embedded humour drawn from his personal journeys and experiences.

You, Me Community by Zanni Louise and Tony Flowers. Walker Books 2026

As the illustrator of You, Me, Community, written by the wonderful Zanni Louise, I wanted to offer a little bit of insight in to how my ideas are folded into the story. This is a picture book built on the idea of connection, not just between characters, but between text and image. Zanni’s lyrical, rhythmic text acts almost like a musical score, setting the tempo and emotional beats. But the words alone, don’t form a conventional narrative. They are the rhythm that I carried into the illustrations, building visually on the metaphors touched on in the text, to create a parallel story and world to explore visually.

While the text reflects on the depth and breadth of what community is and the importance of connection, the illustrations set the scene with a story of two cliff‑top towns divided, we follow two central characters a dog and a crab (In my mind the crab is the narrator of the book), the illustrations reveal the deeper narrative: two communities choosing to build a bridge to come together. The visual world is full of architectural and cultural influences gathered from my travels. Readers with sharp eyes will spot Japanese castles, the cathedral spires of Dinant in Belgium, Tudor buildings from Leeds, Spanish gatehouses, and the tiled stairways of Portugal. Statues and stone carvings from Cambodia, Syria, Scotland, and Italy also make cameo appearances. These details create a rich tapestry of visual information for young readers to explore, encouraging curiosity and close looking.

Inside pages showing two cliff top towns in You, Me, Community

For those that know my past work, my motorcycle makes its traditional appearance. It has featured in every book I’ve illustrated since a publisher once told me never to put motorcycles in a picture book. Apparently, they encourage random acts of risky behaviour in children. This publisher clearly needs to expand their book world to include some of the more obscure author’s and their books with motorcycles in them, like Babette Cole’s Smartypants or Quentin Blake’s Mrs Armitage: Queen of the Road. For me, these small personal touches are part of the joy of illustration: they anchor the work in lived experience and offer a playful wink to returning readers.

Planning double page spread in You, Me, Community.
Can you find the motorbike?

For teachers and librarians keen to explore the visual language of the book, I helped develop the teaching notes for Walker Books Australia, which place a strong emphasis on visual literacy. You’ll also find a growing collection of free resources, behind‑the‑scenes insights, and illustration activities at Divi & Frey a space I’m building for educators and emerging illustrators alike.

Planning stage for an illustration in You, Me, Community

You can follow more of my work and travels on Facebook or Instagram at @tony_flowers99 or visit www.flowersinks.com.au.

Tony Flowers